Insuring owner builders

What is owner builder insurance?

Owner builder insurance is construction insurance - covering a non-professional-builder working on his/her own residential building job against damage during the build, and for public liability.

Construction insurance

refers to protecting the works (the "contract works") against damage - e.g. fire, storm, earthquake, vandalism, theft of building materials, and other perils.

Public liability insurance

refers to protecting the builder (the "owner builder") against claims of personal injury or property damage - e.g. a visitor on site being injured, or the neighbouring property being accidentally damaged by the build.

Other types of owner builder insurance

Include existing structures, your own tools, volunteers' loss of income following injury on site, and workers compensation. These are all optional, and you should consider carefully if you have an exposure to protect.

Existing structures, for example, may not be insured under your regular home and contents insurance.

What isn't owner builder construction insurance?

Faulty workmanship or faulty materials, and risks for which you have no personal stake. For example, you can't insure the tools and equipment belonging to your tradesmen against damage; only your tradies can buy insurance over their own property.

Options to consider

Quotes take around 90 seconds to obtain, and are instantly e-mailed to you with a copy of the policy wording and explanation as to what is insured. We try to give you plenty of options to consider so you can pick and choose the exact insurance package that suits you - there are no hidden costs and you only pay for the insurance you need.